Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) Upgraded by TD Cowen to Strong-Buy Rating

TD Cowen upgraded shares of Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Nektar Therapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 17th. Wedbush reduced their price objective on shares of Nektar Therapeutics from $95.00 to $80.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Nektar Therapeutics from $105.00 to $192.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Nektar Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Nektar Therapeutics in a research note on Friday. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $65.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Nektar Therapeutics currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $141.50.

Nektar Therapeutics Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NKTR stock opened at $73.69 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $2.52 billion, a PE ratio of -11.00 and a beta of 1.14. Nektar Therapeutics has a 12 month low of $26.45 and a 12 month high of $109.00. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $69.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $70.83.

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.23) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.97) by $0.74. Nektar Therapeutics had a negative return on equity of 37.87% and a negative net margin of 287.84%.The company had revenue of $10.13 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.43 million. On average, equities analysts predict that Nektar Therapeutics will post -8.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Nektar Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Howard W. Robin sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.32, for a total value of $603,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 65,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,923,514.40. This represents a 13.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jonathan Zalevsky sold 5,681 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.00, for a total transaction of $397,670.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 9,756 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $682,920. This represents a 36.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 21,823 shares of company stock valued at $1,380,558 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nektar Therapeutics

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Nektar Therapeutics by 336.9% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,640,851 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,463,000 after acquiring an additional 2,807,595 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System lifted its position in Nektar Therapeutics by 8,374.9% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 2,430,784 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $169,693,000 after buying an additional 2,402,102 shares in the last quarter. Two Seas Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Nektar Therapeutics in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,506,000. Prosight Management LP purchased a new stake in Nektar Therapeutics in the fourth quarter valued at $23,450,000. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its position in Nektar Therapeutics by 446.9% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 434,237 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $24,708,000 after buying an additional 354,842 shares during the last quarter. 75.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Nektar Therapeutics

Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ:NKTR) is a biopharmaceutical company dedicated to discovering and developing novel drug candidates through its proprietary chemistry and immunology platforms. The company focuses on polymer conjugate technology, which enables the creation of longer-acting versions of existing drugs, and on T-cell modulatory therapies aimed at harnessing the body’s immune system to treat cancer and other serious diseases.

Nektar’s product portfolio and pipeline include a range of clinical-stage and partnered programs.